©2005 Rona Green, Party Fink. Linocut and watercolor, 33 x 33 centimeters, edition of 33.

In Letters to a Young Artist: Building a Life in Art, Julia Cameron writes:

Remember that art is about being interested, not about being interesting.

True?

How so?

Why not?

Tibi Hegyesi asked on my Facebook page: Is it a good idea to post online previews of artwork that will be included in an upcoming show, or is it better to keep the work under wraps until the big reveal?

Tibi Hegyesi's booth at Art Expo New York is full of visitors.

I don’t think you can lose by sharing the work in advance, unless the exhibition organizers prohibit this. (Read the details of your agreement!) People rarely go out of their way to view the unknown. We need a reason to get dressed and make the trip. Seeing artwork that we connect with is the best way to motivate us to come to your exhibit.

But you don’t have to reveal all of the work in a show at once. Nor do you have to reveal it to everyone.

Every little bit you share is a gift of yourself. If you frame it correctly, you can show your fans how much you value them.

Tease + One a Day

In I’d Rather Be in the Studio, I share the story of artist Margret Short, who started blogging to help promote a seminal exhibit. She gave her blog readers a sneak peek at a single detail of her paintings as she completed them: a piece of lace or an object in a still life. It was a tease to get people interested in seeing more.

Margret Short teases readers with a sneak peek of her painting, The Tears of Fernad.

In the two weeks before the opening, Margret posted the full image of each painting that would be included in the exhibit – one day at a time. To my knowledge, the images were never posted as a group on a single page.

Margret Short reveals the completed painting, The Tears of Fernad, on her blog.

You could follow Margret’s example, or you could choose to share only details with blog readers and save the completed works with collectors only.

Collectors’ Perk

As I suggest in the Cultivate Collectors class (beginning next week), you can create a private Web page for your collectors as a reward for their loyalty. Let them know that they are the only ones who have access to the page, and that they alone can view all of the work that will be installed in the exhibit.

Lisa Call has tried this. She said she sold one piece from the preview, which makes it worth the effort to do it again for an upcoming exhibit.

No collectors yet? You could also offer a private Web page for newsletter subscribers only. Announce on social media:

My newsletter subscribers are getting a behind-the-scenes look at the works that will be on view next month at X gallery. Sign up now to get the secret URL.

Go ahead and spoil the surprise! Have fun sharing your art in advance of an exhibit, and remember that it’s a gift of yourself.

Please leave a comment below to share your thoughts about pre-show posting.

In case you’ve been hiding under a rock and haven’t heard, 300 of Damien Hirst’s Spot Paintings are filling up all 11 Gagosian gallery locations around the world: New York (3 locations), Beverly Hills, London (2 locations), Paris, Rome, Geneva, Athens, and Hong Kong.

The Complete Spot Challenge was issued to encourage people to visit all 11 locations. It states:

Visit all eleven Gagosian Gallery locations during the exhibition The Complete Spot Paintings 1986–2011 and receive a signed spot print by Damien Hirst, dedicated personally to you.

One blogger opines it would take $100,000 to visit all of the sites. Another says she could do it with $5,800.

Meanwhile, at least two people completed the Complete Spot Challenge 8 days after the exhibits opened – visiting all 11 locations around the world (US, Asia, and Europe). And you can follow others update their travels on Twitter.

Steal the Idea

Regardless of what you think of Hirst or his art, you can take a marketing lesson from this.

Hirst didn’t really care about giving away a signed print. He didn’t care if anyone actually saw and appreciated all of the work. What he cared about was the buzz that such a challenge would create.

Even the people that thought the challenge ludicrous wrote about it and contributed to its buzz.

Sure, it’s a gimmick, but gimmicks work. They create controversy and they get people talking.

Okay, maybe you don’t have 11 galleries around the word. But you could host multiple exhibits simultaneously in your own town.

How could you make this gimmick work for you?

Guest blogger: Debby L. Williams

Are you responding to Calls for Entry? If you’re having success with them, then good for you! If you would like to know what might be going wrong, read on.

Call for Entry is used here to include any request for artists to submit information to compete for art exhibitions, contests, or commissions (e.g. Request for Qualifications or Request for Proposals). There are differences among those types of competitions, but let’s start at the very basics: how to evaluate a Call and decide if you should respond.

A pile of artist responses to an RFQ needs attention from the guest blogger.

You’ll find an overwhelming number of Calls for artists on the Internet. You can’t possibly respond to all the ones you come across – nor would you want to. So how do you decide?

Remember that as an artist your assets are your creativity and investment in time and money. This is always your first consideration. Ask yourself: “Is responding to this Call and ultimately this project worth my creative capital, time, and resources? Does it help me get to where I want to go professionally?”

To help you decide, consider these additional questions.

• Is the work produced for the exhibition/competition relevant to your present body of work? Curators, gallery representative and buyers will most likely remember your name and associate it with a medium, subject and/or style. The work you create in response to a Call should be reasonably within those parameters so it will make sense to the public and the work will fit into your portfolio.
• If you were chosen to participate, does being in that exhibition/creating that work of art fit with your career plan (you know, that plan that is there to keep you on track to get you where you want to go)? You must have those art and business plans in place as your map for your art career journey and the project you are considering needs to keep you on that road. Don’t be distracted by shiny things in the distance.
• Is the scale (physical size) of the requested work appropriate for the work you are creating at this time? If you typically create miniatures, this may not be the best time to respond to a project for designing enhancements for a bridge over six lanes of traffic! It is harder to estimate your expenses and time for a project of such a different scale and the jurors may quickly dismiss your submission because of your lack of experience with such projects.
• Does the timeline fit reasonably within the time parameters you have to work in and allow you to maintain the quality of your work? Sometimes it is easy to convince yourself that a project is doable even while knowing the delivery date is during a month that you have five other deadlines and several important personal commitments. It is important to view the time element realistically.
• Does the amount of the commission or prize/award make it financially feasible? Have you considered all of your expenses? This is imperative! It can be very seductive to see a large prize or commission and want to immediately respond to the Call, but you have to stop and really consider the cost of the project. Think twice before being willing to sacrifice a proper artist’s fee for the art you create.

These tips for evaluating Calls for Entry are based on my experiences working with artists and writing Calls for Entries for many years. And while there are always exceptions, these are important considerations that can help you make good choices about how to use your talents, time and resources.

After you have decided to respond to that Call for Entries, then what?  Stay tuned. My next post will address that question!

About the Guest Blogger
Debby L. Williams is the Director of Oklahoma Art in Public Places. She’s been a curator, museum director, and arts administrator and loves a good (or bad) martini. Debby is my partner for new live workshops for beginning artists.

The best of my tweets from the past couple of weeks.

New iPhone app makes camera behave more like SLR. Pretty cool ow.ly/8QCvL via @hyperallergic

IRBITS (my book) is now available for the Kindle! artbizcoach.com/irbits

RT @JanTanton: You know you’re an artist when…100 list bit.ly/A43wRp <Fun!

I’m Hooked! 10 Reasons Why Artists Love Pinterest twrt.me/mycncd via @lorimcneeartist

Tweets after reading my site stats:

• In Jan, 5 of my top 10 keyword searches were related to Twitter – esp “twitter names” Interesting
• About 12% of my blog/site visitors are using tablets & smart phones
• Also in Jan, Facebook was by far my top referring site – sending 28% of my blog visitors

Be Better at Twitter: The Definitive, Data-Driven Guide zite.to/zEZ5mu

Want Some Publicity? How Artists can Finesse the Press twrt.me/linmvk via @ArtsyShark

When naming your files, choose dashes over underscores every time. Straight fr the mouth of Google: ow.ly/8HvYm

Most people think staying in touch is sending a bulk email every month or two. Not! #smartist artbizblog.com/smartist

Make marketing less icky by nurturing honest, meaningful relationships #smartist artbizblog.com/smartist

Until you have amazing work, you will blend into the crowd and remain quite forgettable. #smartist artbizblog.com/smartist

24 best publicity tips fr 2011 via @PublicityHound ow.ly/8wBPZ

When Is The Best Time Of The Day To Blog? socialfresh.com/best-time-of-d… via @jasonkeath <Very interesting

Colbert interviews with Maurice Sendak #priceless

• Part 1 (Jan 24)
• Part 2 (Jan 25)

How to make ringtones in iTunes pinterest.com/pin/6720221940…

26 Tips for Writing Great Blog Posts zite.to/yJtI9t

12 best places to get free images for your website or blog. ow.ly/8Dwf6 via @PublicityHound

Your relationship with a collector doesn’t end when the work is purchased.

It has just begun.

Discuss.

Some friends will see it on Facebook, most won’t.
Some followers will catch your tweet or your +1 post, most won’t.
Some people will read your email or blog post, some won’t.

©2010 Cheryl Laube, Why. From the "Being Woman” Series III. Archival digital print, 17 x 22 inches.

Six artists scheduled a one-night-only art show in the boutique hotel just down the hill from me. I know two of them fairly well.

I received an email announcement (bulk blast) from one of the artists about 3 weeks before the event. I added the date to my calendar.

Then . . . silence. I heard not a peep from anyone else.

I looked forward to the event, even though I wondered why I didn’t hear more about it since it was so close to me.

Being the Art Biz Coach, I entered the artists’ makeshift gallery on the night of the shindig and couldn’t wait to tease one of them. “I’m here even though you didn’t invite me,” I said.

Her response was one of surprise. She said she had been talking about it on Facebook for a long time. Of course, she was very apologetic and perplexed as to why I didn’t hear about it from her.

Facebook as Curator

Chatting something up on Facebook is fantastic, but it can’t be your only promotion avenue.

Have you noticed how Facebook decides what they think you want to see? If someone has hundreds of friends, it’s darned near impossible to get to the top of someone’s Home page feed every day.

When is the last time you spent the day going through the feeds of all of your friends and page likes? (Please say Never!)

And when is the last time you really paid attention to invitations for Facebook events? C’mon, be honest.

Diversify Your Marketing Message Delivery

You must use all of the weapons in your marketing arsenal to get attention. This means a combination of social media, email, and snail mail (postcards, in particular).

Very few people will see it in all of these formats, and you’ll be blessed if those on your list act on a single notice from you.

Don’t trust social media alone to deliver an important message. Don’t trust email or snail mail alone, either. You need a combination – a 1, 2, 3 PUNCH!

Have you had a similar experience?

By Tara Reed

So you’ve heard about art licensing and think it sounds amazing! You can create art and have several people pay you for the rights to use it. You don’t have to do any of the marketing, selling or credit card processing. Heck, you’ve heard about people who make millions doing it so why shouldn’t you?

Well… it’s not that easy.

I will begin by telling you it is possible to earn a living licensing your art and that it can be done. I built my business from the ground up and absolutely love the whole process.

I will also tell you that it isn’t for everyone. One of my missions in writing, teaching and speaking about art licensing is to give artists a realistic view of what this business is and not a pie-in-the-sky “anyone can do it!” perspective.

Reality Check

1. It takes time to start making money . . . and by time I mean it can take 1-3 years so you need an alternate source of income while you see if your art is a fit.

2.  Speaking of art being a fit, not all art is suited to licensing. Art for licensing is art that will work on and help sell products. That is the whole point. Manufacturers looks for designs to use on their products so consumers will buy them. There isn’t a lot of abstract art being licensed, for example. But you will never see snowmen or roosters leave the stores because people always seem to want to buy things with snowmen and roosters. (Not necessarily together, of course.)

3.  There is a lot of competition. In recent years more artists have become aware of the idea of licensing and there are more people talking about how to do it.  A lot of artists who used to work for manufacturers have been downsized and have entered the pool of artists licensing their work. This means your art has to be that much better. Manufacturers have a lot of choices so you need to put your best art forward to land that deal.

4.  You might be asked to create quickly. There are many times when deadlines will be tight so if you don’t like creating on the turn of a dime, you might not love the process of licensing your art.  Or, if you choose not to do things quickly (which is your choice since you are in business for yourself) you simply won’t get the deal.

5.  You need to be determined and you must be able to handle rejection . . . or crickets. (Meaning no response at all.)  Art licensing is not for the faint of heart. It takes a lot of work to create your art and market your art. It takes a firm sense of self and the ability to listen to and learn from feedback when your art isn’t selected. You also need to be able to keep creating and marketing when you submit art and never hear anything back.

6.  Changes to the art is more of a rule than an exception. In point #2 I mentioned that the whole purpose of the art in licensing is to help sell products. That could mean that a manufacturer who is interested in your work might ask for changes based on trends they are seeing in the marketplace or requests they are receiving from retailers. 

I would guess that about 80% of the work that I do is changed in some way between when I show it to a manufacturer and when it lands on a store shelf. It might be a color change, size change, or layout change. You have to know that you and the manufacturer are partners, trying to create the best product possible in hopes of lots and lots of sales. That is, after all, how you earn your living.  (Most art licensing deals are done as a royalty based on sales so the more products that sell, the higher your royalty check!)

I’m feeling like the first 6 points could be construed as a bit negative but they are simply some realities of this business. It is better to know about them before you devote a lot of time and energy to creating art for licensing, right? If you know you hate to work on a deadline you can save some time and look at other money making options for your art.

The Good Stuff

Let’s finish up with some things that I absolutely love about licensing! (You will find that some of these points were mentioned before as well.)

7.  When licensing your art is really working, you will be paid for the same art by multiple manufacturers. This is a concept I love. I love that I can create a holiday collection and license the rights to use the same art to different manufacturers for different projects. It makes sense to me. Why sell the art outright to a company who will only use it for paper plates and napkins? Instead I can license it to a company who makes paper plates and napkins, then to another who makes ceramic plates, and another who makes rubber stamps, etc. It is like a game to come up with art that will work across a variety of products and then connect with the people who choose the art.

8.  You get to collaborate with manufacturers. This is one of my favorite things. Like many artists, I work alone in my studio, which is in my home. Not a lot of water cooler talk or heading to lunch with the gang. My co-workers become the licensing managers and art directors across the country who I talk to and brainstorm about art and product design. Very often I have art that they like and then we come up with some changes or additions to make it really fit for them. It’s so exciting to later see it in the stores and remember the conversations when the ideas were born.

9.  You don’t have to focus on one product and manage all aspects – from production to marketing to sales to shipping and returns. Starting a greeting card business is a full time job. You have to study the market, create the art, invest in production and then figure out how to get the word out about your great creations. You don’t have time to also manufacture ceramic dishes, handbags and picture frames too! With licensing, you focus on the art and find the people who are making and selling and shipping – leaving you time to get back to creating the art.

10.  It is so incredibly cool to go into a store and see products for sale with your art on them! After 8 years licensing my art I am still delighted each and every time it happens and hope I never become immune to the feeling. I’ve heard artists say it’s selling out to have your art mass produced but I wholeheartedly disagree.  I think it is a very fun, interesting and satisfying way to make a living.

Tara Reed finds some of her designs on products on the shelf.

There you have some pluses and minuses of pursuing a career in art licensing. There are those who will read this and think to themselves, “This is simply not for me.” If you are one of them, I wish you much success in whatever you decide is a fit. Others will be intrigued and want to learn more. If you fall into that category, I invite you to visit my website and blog to learn more.

About the Guest Blogger
Tara Reed is a successful licensor of her art and teaches artists how to follow her path at ArtLicensingInfo.com. You can visit that link, sign up for her bi-weekly newsletter, and receive her Beginner Basics audio program for just $10. Her creative juices flow in her Portland, Oregon studio.

With so many good documentaries about art available, it’s time to update my list. Add them to your queue, watch them online when you can, or find clips on YouTube.

These are too good to miss.

Tops on My List

The PBS series art: 21. A pioneering series on artists making art today. Don’t miss a single episode.

How to Draw a Bunny  – The mysterious art, life, death of Ray Johnson. I haven’t seen it in a long while, but it made an impact and is still at the top of my list.

The Woodmans – I watched this in 2011 and had to move it toward the top of the list. The artistic family of ceramist Betty Woodman, the tragic death of her talented daughter, photographer Francesca Woodman, and how their art triumphs. (The rest here are in no particular order.)

My Architect – The life of Louis Kahn, through his son’s eyes.

Glaring omission from the original list (thanks for catching it, John) – #20: Rivers & Tides – Follows “landscape sculptor” Andy Goldsworth as he creates ephemeral works of art using objects found in nature. Terrible website, by the way – not at all reflective of the film.

A documentary on Morris Louis that I saw in his traveling retrospective. But I have no title or resource for it. It’s just terrific and I’d love to see it again.

Painters Painting - An amazing 2-part film featuring key figures in American art from 1940 to 1970.

Helvetica -Yep, a whole film about the typeface. Very fun to hear all of these designers talking about typefaces and visual communication.

Herb & Dorothy - Who hasn’t seen this lovely film about two unlike art collectors?

Valentino: The Last Emperor – I adored this movie about fashion designer Valentino. It’s gorgeous to look at.

Exit Through the Gift Shop – Banksy’s film about street art. Is it a documentary or not? It certainly makes us question how art is made.

Waste Land – More than a film about art, this is about an artist (Vik Muniz) affecting social change through art. The stories are heartwarming, the people are beautiful

Others Worth Watching

Rothko’s Rooms – About Mark Rothko’s Seagram paintings at the Tate Modern and the demand he put on exhibiting his work. Often available for viewing on OvationTV

Maya Lin: A Strong Clear Vision

Any film about Christo and Jeanne-Claude – All of them show the amazing, unconventional (and laden with red tape!) process that these artists go through to make their vision a reality.

The Rape of Europa - The story of American GI’s whose duty it was to return art stolen by the Nazis.

The Art of the Steal – Definitely a one-sided view of relocation of the Barnes Collection from Merion, PA to Philadelphia.

Sketches of Frank Gehry – The Sydney Pollack documentary about the famed architect.

Matthew Barney: No Restraint – An inside peek at Barney’s work, with his partner and collaborator Björk, aboard a whaling ship. A little too bloody for my taste, if I recall.

Over Your Cities Grass Will Grow – About the personal universe created by German artist Anselm Kiefer on the grounds of his estate in the South of France. Haunting soundtrack!

Add your own art documentary choices in a comment.

If you like this article, please tweet, share, or +1 using your link of choice below.

Coming up next: Fictional movies with an artist as the central character – real or imagined artists.

Joseph Beuys famously said “Everyone is an artist,” referring to his belief in a universal human creativity and the power of art to bring about revolutionary change.

Beuys Felt TV performance. Photo by Lothar Wolleh.

Lately, many thinkers have been using the word “artist” to describe someone who acts as a force of change – who does something different to shake up the status quo and make us look at life and work in new ways. Read Seth Godin’s definition of art. Read his book Linchpin to see how he uses “artist.”

Godin is so influential (I am a huge fan and follower) that many, many people have adopted his definitions of art and artist.

Deep Thought Thursday

Here’s the problem: If everyone is an artist, where does that leave you? What do you call yourself?

How does what you do differ from the “artist” who discovers the cure for an epidemic or the “artist” who maneuvers a brilliant business takeover?